1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to book holders for holding open a book so as to facilitate reading of the pages of the book. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to a book holder which is of a simple, light and easy to use construction.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The process of reading a book can become somewhat tedious, in that the reader must constantly hold open the book against the resilient action of its spine. More importantly, those readers who are physically handicapped must struggle all the more with keeping the book open in a configuration that favors page reading.
In the prior art there have been various kinds of book holders, as exemplified by the following U.S. patents. U.S. Pat. No. 1,196,715 to Noll, dated Aug. 29, 1916, discloses a book holder which holds open the pages at the spine of the book via operation of a rear bracket and two spreadable legs. U.S. Pat. No. 1,710,949 to Pokora, dated Apr. 30, 1929, discloses a book holder in which a clip portion is spring loaded with respect to a finger, the finger holding the pages of the book open. U.S. Pat. No. 4,382,617 to Fortier, dated May 10, 1983, discloses a book holder having a central set of prongs which engage the book at the spine, and a set of arms connected thereto for holding the pages open. U.S. Pat. No. 4,474,383 to Kikis, dated Oct. 2, 1984, discloses a book holder having a base with two opposing looped end portions, wherein a book sits atop the base and the pages are held open by capture within the looped end portions. U.S. Pat. No. 4,512,542 to Black, dated Apr. 23, 1985, discloses a book holder in the form of two mutually pivotably connected wires each wire having a looped end portion; legs are hingably connected thereto, as well. U.S. Pat. No. 4,645,236 to Kemp, Jr., dated Feb. 24, 1987, discloses a book holder in the form of a flat member having a slotted flat finger at each end for engaging pages of the book. Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 4,932,680 to Rivera, dated Jun. 12, 1990, discloses a book holder in the form of a wire shaped to include a leg portion that inserts into the spine of the book, and a front transverse portion connected to the leg portion which effects to hold pages of the book in place.
While each of the foregoing patents discloses a book holder which serves to hold pages of a book in an open, readable configuration, each suffers from one or more of the following: excessive complexity, weight, or cost; difficulty to use (too much work to adjust each time a page is turned); and potential damage to the book (wherever a spine engagement is required). Accordingly, what remains needed in the art is a book holder which holes a book open so that the pages may be easily read, is light, inexpensive, and very easily accommodates page turning.